Cooling system for an upper garment

ABSTRACT

A cooling system of an upper garment wherein the cooling pad is formed from a coil of conduit disposed over the chest/heart-region of the user beneath the upper garment. The hear-region disposition of the low-profile coiled cooling pad facilitates the cooling effect to be circulated by way of the user&#39;s circulatory system. The cooling pad is fluidly connected to a reservoir and pump for urging coolant flow between the three elements. The power supply, reservoir and fans for cooling the latter two elements are disposed external to the upper garment, so that heat they may generate can dissipate away from the user.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims the benefit of priority of U.S. provisionalapplication No. 62/958,922, filed 9 Jan. 2020, the contents of which areherein incorporated by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to cooling systems and, more particularly,a cooling system for an upper garment, such as a vest, and in certainembodiments, body armor.

A frequent complaint of users of body armor is the heat generated bytheir protective equipment. Current options only consist of vents forair-cooling the user, or have tubing running through the fabric of anupper garment. Air cooling, however, relies on the evaporation ofpre-existing sweat of the user, which, while effective, still taxes anddehydrates the body, making additional hydration required. Tubingsystems, currently marketed to athletes, only provide the cooling effectsporadically over the torso. Thus, neither the use of vents nor tubingis practical for use in the field of protective body armor.

As can be seen, there is a need for a new and non-obvious cooling systemfor body armor. The present invention makes the best use of materialsand concentrates the cooling effect over the heart of the wearer. Theheart-centric location enables the cooling effect to be passed throughthe entire body by way of blood flow, as opposed to limiting the coolingeffect to portions of the torso or limbs.

The system embodied in the present invention does not rely on sweatevaporating to cool the user, so dehydration will not be exacerbated.The present invention helps the user stay cooler, and thus moreeffective at their mission.

Liquid coolants are efficient at storing heat. The pump provided by thecooling system will transport the liquid coolant through conduits thatare concentrated and coiled over the chest of the user. The fluidlyconnected reservoir for the liquid coolant is placed outside of the bodyarmor, where heat is not trapped against the user, further facilitatingkeeping the wearer of the body armor cool.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In one aspect of the present invention, a cooling system for an uppergarment dimensioned and adapted to be worn along an upper torso of ahuman wearer, including the following: a cooling pad disposed betweenthe upper garment and a chest of the human wearer so that the coolingpad is adjacent to a heart of the human wearer.

In another aspect of the present invention, a cooling system for bodyarmor dimensioned and adapted to be worn along an upper torso of a humanwearer, comprising: a cooling pad disposed between the body armor and achest of the human wearer so that the cooling pad is adjacent to a heartof the human wearer; the cooling pad comprising a generally planar coilof conduit; a pump electrically coupled to a power source; a reservoir;the pump, the reservoir and the coil of conduit fluidly coupled to eachother; the pump, the power source, and the reservoir disposed externallyto the upper garment; the pump and the reservoir disposed in a carrier;one or more fans disposed in the carrier; a thermostat electricallycoupled to a thermal sensor; the thermal sensor disposed against a bodyof the human wearer; and the thermostat programmable to operate the oneor more fans when a predefined temperature is sensed by the thermalsensor.

These and other features, aspects and advantages of the presentinvention will become better understood with reference to the followingdrawings, description and claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of an exemplary embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 2 is a schematic view of an exemplary embodiment of the externalcomponents of present invention, which may include a pump connected viacables to a thermostat and power source. In certain embodiments, anelectrical connection connects from the positive terminal of the pump tothe positive output port of the thermostat, and the negative terminal ofthe pump to the (GND) port of the thermostat. A switch may reside inseries between the power supply and the thermostat. An electricalconnection from the switch may connect to the thermostat and pump to thepositive input port of the thermostat (12v), and the negative input portto the thermostat (GND). An electrical connection may form a bridge tothe power source (12v) to complete the circuit. The cooling fans mayconnect to the positive and negative terminals of the pump; and

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of an exemplary embodiment of the presentinvention, shown in use, illustrating the placement of cooling pad in anupper garment, and the external components outside of the upper garment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The following detailed description is of the best currently contemplatedmodes of carrying out exemplary embodiments of the invention. Thedescription is not to be taken in a limiting sense, but is made merelyfor the purpose of illustrating the general principles of the invention,since the scope of the invention is best defined by the appended claims.

Broadly, an embodiment of the present invention provides a coolingsystem of the upper garment wherein the cooling pad is formed from acoil of conduit disposed over the chest/heart-region of the user beneaththe upper garment. The hear-region disposition of the low-profile coiledcooling pad facilitates the cooling effect to be circulated by way ofthe user's circulatory system. The cooling pad is fluidly connected to areservoir and pump for urging coolant flow between the three elements.The power supply, reservoir and fans for cooling the latter two elementsare disposed external to the upper garment, so that heat they maygenerate can dissipate away from the user.

Referring now to FIGS. 1 through 3, the present invention may include acooling system 100 for an upper garment 42. The upper garment 42 may bebody armor. The cooling system 100 may include one or more cooling pads10. Each cooling pad 10 may be a coil of conduit, as illustrated inFIG. 1. A pump 16 and a reservoir 20 are fluidly coupled to each coolingpad 10 by way of a coolant feed conduit 24 and a return conduit 22,respectively. The pump 16 and the reservoir 20 may be fluidly coupleddirectly by way of a pump feed line 26. As a result, the reservoir 20,the cooling pad 10 and the pump 16 are all fluidly connected to eachother. The present invention may include a tubing assembly having tubingconnectors 50 for unit replacement or future upgrades and adaptions tothe tubing for conduits 22, 24, and 26.

The pump 16 may be coupled to a power source 18 with a power switch 28operatively associated thereto for activating and deactivating the pump16. When power is provided, the pump 16 is enabled to transportation ofthe coolant flow 38 to and from the reservoir 20 to the cooling pad 10.The liquid coolant flow 38 may be urged from the reservoir 20 to thepump 16 via the coolant pump feed line 26. The coolant flow 38 may thenbe urged via the coolant feed conduit 24 to each cooling pad 10. Afterthe coolant flow 38 cycles through the cooling pad 10, the coolant flow38 may return via the coolant return conduit 22 back to the reservoir20.

The cooling pad 10 may be placed between the body armor 42 and the chestof the user 40, located against or adjacent to the heart of the user 40.This location allows for the lower temperature to transfer to the heartof the user, circulate via the bloodstream, thus cooling the user. Thereservoir 20 will retain all coolant not in use.

The reservoir 20, the pump 16 and the power source 18 may be locatedoutside of the upper garment 42, possibly in a carrier/pouch 34 attachedto another portion of the user 40, such as along a belt as illustratedin FIG. 3, though in other embodiments may have the power componentsmounted on the upper garment 42 itself, located in a backpack, etc. Thisexternal disposition of the power components (schematically illustratedin FIG. 2) enables the present invention to expel excess heat generatedby such power components that would otherwise be trapped against thebody of the user 40. The pump 16 may be attached to the outside of thereservoir 20 using adhesive.

The thermostat 32 may be operatively associated with a temperaturesensor 30, both electrically connected to one or more fans 36 and thepower source 18. The temperature sensor 30 may be located between theuser 40 and the upper garment 42 for sensing the body heat of the user40. The temperature sensor 30 may be at or adjacent to the cooling pad10, though not necessarily (even though that is what is shown in FIG. 3)as the cooling temperatures emanating from the cooling pad 10 iscirculated throughout the body due to the placement of the cooling pad10 adjacent the heart of the user 40. The thermostat 32 may beprogrammable so that if a predefined temperature range is sensed by thetemperature sensor 30, then the one or more fans 36 are powered by thepower source 18, thereby allowing for personalized temperature control.The fans 36 may be mounted to/in the carrier/pouch 34 to prevent heatbuildup. When the power is engaged, the fans 36 may facilitate coolingin the carrier/pouch 34. As mentioned above, carrier/pouch 34 maycontain the pump 16, the power supply 18, reservoir 20, a portion of theconduits 22, 24 and 26, the thermostat 32, and fans 36.

The cooling pad 10 may be created using a coil formation of tubing heldtogether in place using adhesive attaching it to a mounting pad 12. Themounting pad 12 maybe a thin thermally conductive material, such asplastic. Mounting straps 14 and/or hook-and-loop fasteners may extendfrom the mounting pad 12 for preventing unwanted movement or shiftingwhile in use, secured to the chest of the user 40.

A commercially available power source 18 may be connected via a cablewhich provides the necessary voltage to power the pump 16. The reservoir20 may be a rigid container, with holes drilled to allow the tubingassembly/conduits 22 and 26 access to cooling fluid. To prevent leaking,sealant may be applied where the tubing assembly may be connected to thereservoir 20.

A bladder can be added to, or even replace a too rigid reservoir tomitigate potential leaking. An additional pump can be added tofacilitate additional cooling pads. These additional cooling pads may belocated in similarly strategic locations, such as at the armpit andlower back. The power source may be a longer-lasting battery. The tubingof the present invention can be replaced with another type of tubingthat is more efficient at conducting heat.

A refrigerant apparatus can be added to enhance the cooling effect inthe reservoir. The configuration of the present invention may use wateror other coolant (including, but not limited to, saline solution ormineral oil) for the cooling effect.

A method of using the present invention may include the following. Thecooling pad 10 may be located between the upper garment 42 and the chestof the user 40, located over the heart, by way of the mounting pad 12.Once powered on, the cooling system 100 allows the cooling effect totake place adjacent to the heart of the user 40, while the heatgenerating power components are disposed outside the upper garment 42.

It should be understood, of course, that the foregoing relates toexemplary embodiments of the invention and that modifications may bemade without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as setforth in the following claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A cooling system for an upper garment dimensionedand adapted to be worn along an upper torso of a human wearer,comprising: a cooling pad disposed between the upper garment and a chestof the human wearer so that the cooling pad is adjacent to a heart ofthe human wearer.
 2. The cooling system of claim 1, wherein the coolingpad comprising a coil of conduit.
 3. The cooling system of claim 2,wherein the coil of conduit is generally planar.
 4. The cooling systemof claim 1, further comprising: a pump; a reservoir; the pump, thereservoir and the cooling pad fluidly coupled to each other.
 5. Thecooling system of claim 4, further comprising: the pump electricallycoupled to a power source; and the pump, the power source, and thereservoir disposed externally to the upper garment.
 6. The coolingsystem of claim 5, further comprising: the pump and the reservoirdisposed in a carrier; and one or more fans disposed in the carrier. 7.The cooling system of claim 6, further comprising: a thermostatelectrically coupled to a thermal sensor; the thermal sensor disposedagainst a body of the human wearer; and the thermostat programmable tooperate the one or more fans when a predefined temperature is sensed bythe thermal sensor.
 8. The cooling system of claim 4, further comprisinga coolant fluid urged by the pump between the cooling pad and thereservoir.
 9. The cooling system of claim 1 wherein the upper garment isa body armor.
 10. A cooling system for body armor dimensioned andadapted to be worn along an upper torso of a human wearer, comprising: acooling pad disposed between the body armor and a chest of the humanwearer so that the cooling pad is adjacent to a heart of the humanwearer; the cooling pad comprising a generally planar coil of conduit; apump electrically coupled to a power source; a reservoir; the pump, thereservoir and the coil of conduit fluidly coupled to each other; thepump, the power source, and the reservoir disposed externally to theupper garment; the pump and the reservoir disposed in a carrier; one ormore fans disposed in the carrier; a thermostat electrically coupled toa thermal sensor; the thermal sensor disposed against a body of thehuman wearer; and the thermostat programmable to operate the one or morefans when a predefined temperature is sensed by the thermal sensor. 11.The cooling system of claim 10, further comprising a coolant fluid urgedby the pump between the cooling pad and the reservoir.